In this guide, I’ll cover how to go from Guangzhou to Hong Kong by train departing from Guangzhou Railway Station or Guangzhou East Railway Station. If you want to travel on the XRL line from Guangzhou South Railway Station to Hong Kong see this guide.
Guangzhou Railway Station and Guangzhou East Railway Station are on the same line that heads to the mainland Hong Kong border at Luohu, Shenzhen. Train services from Guangzhou East station are more frequent.
This method is convenient in that you can board a train at GZ Railway Station or GZ East Railway Station both of which are centrally located in Guangzhou.
As mentioned, the train takes you to the Shenzhen-Hong Kong border at Luohu where you disembark, pass through customs and once in HK, grab a ticket and board the East Rail Line to Kowloon or your choice of station on the Hong Kong MTR.
Journey Time: total around 170min (GZ-SZ: 80min / SZ-HK border crossing: 30min / East Rail Line to Kowloon: 60min) plus train waiting times.
Cost: total 119 RMB (GZ-SZ: 80RMB / East Rail Line to Kowloon: 43HKD)
From GZ to SZ/HK Border at Luohu, Shenzhen
GZ East Railway Station (广州东) is located in Tianhe District and if you are in the CBD or Haizhu then it is very convenient to get to this station with metro line 3 or line 1 taking you directly to the railway station. You can buy tickets at the station or online at cTrip.com that take you to Shenzhen Railway Station (Chinese: 深圳站 Pinyin: Shenzhen Zhan) at Luohu.
Departures: There are 62 departures daily from 6.08 till 22.15
GZ Railway Station (广州火车站) is located in Yuexiu District and surrounded by wholesale markets. It is a large bustling station. You can reach the station via metro line 2 or line 5. As per GZ East Station, you can buy tickets at the station or online at cTrip.com that take you to Shenzhen Railway Station (Chinese: 深圳站 Pinyin: Shenzhen Zhan) at Luohu.
Departures: There are 16 departures daily (C and D trains) beginning at 6.30 till 22:22.
Crossing the border at Luohu to Hong Kong
It is a popular border crossing and reasonably easy to navigate. Once you depart the train and enter the foyer area look for the signs saying Hong Kong and follow that. It’s a bit of maze but you’ll follow the flow and get there OK. Pass through Chinese customs, walk across the sealed bridge and then pass through Hong Kong customs. Note on the Hong Kong side it is called Lo Wu.
Luohu HK border map
1. Shenzhen Railway Station 2. Shenzhen Luohu Railway Station Hotel 3. LCC & Luohu Coach Station 4. Port and Border Checkpoint 5. West Square and Qiaoshe Passenger Station 6. East Square 7. Shangri La Hotel 8. Hong Kong – Lo Wu
On leaving HK customs you’ll then need to purchase a ticket for the train. For this, you’ll need HK dollars and there are money changers and an ATM near. With the ticket head downstairs to the train platform and board the next available train.
The standard ticket cost is 43 HKD and first-class is 86 HKD based on departing at Kowloon Tong. This train can get very busy and although the first class doesn’t offer much more, it may offer a bit more breathing room so to speak. For an exact price on the MTR to your destination see the journey planner at mtr.com.hk
Departures: This line operates from 5.30 till just after midnight with departures every 2-8 minutes.
Depending on where you want to go you will either want to get off at Kowloon Tong Station and transfer to the Kwun Tong Line, or continue on to Mong Kok Station, Hung Hom Station, or East Tsim Sha Tsui station and transfer as you need. Here are a guide and map of the Hong Kong MTR system including the East Rail Line.
If you are heading from Hong Kong to Guangzhou, it’s the same thing but in reverse. For other transport options between GZ and HK see here for five options.